Oklahoma City’s title hopes against the Heat depend on Westbrook
By CLIFF BRUNT
ISL Editor
Nobody seems to like Russell Westbrook anymore.
The Oklahoma City guard is getting ripped by national columnists, on the airwaves and by a lot of other people who claim to know a lot about basketball.
If the Thunder win tonight, number zero will play a huge role.
Don’t worry, OKC fans. He’s good enough to deliver.
You see, he’s unguardable.
Huh?
Yes, unguardable. Does it ever really look like anybody’s keeping up with him?
Nope. Not even Dwyane Wade. Westbrook’s biggest problem is Westbrook.
He’s so talented, so fast, so quick, so strong that he believes he can make any shot. His coach, Scott Brooks, believes it, too. So does Kevin Durant.
So he shoots. A lot. More than some would like. Sometimes he scores, sometimes he misses. But he keeps shooting because he can, and he has to. Oklahoma City’s starters outside Westbrook and Durant, Thabo Sefolosha, Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins, are defensive players. Who else do you want shooting? Durant can’t take EVERY shot.
Westbrook needs his shots to get into a flow. When he’s on, he can easily score in the 30s. If he’s one of the first two people to get the ball after a defensive rebound, you’re immediately on your heels and at risk of an and-1 because of his speed and strength.
Durant needs him because if he’s not scaring the daylights out of Miami’s defense, five people are guarding number 35. Durant is a smart man. He doesn’t want that.
Plus, you want Westbrook to alter the other team’s gameplan. See, Westbrook scares opponents because he’s so reckless. How many times has Westbrook put up a shot where you blinked and thought, “I can’t believe he shot that already!” If you’re surprised, imagine what his defender feels like. You have to be aware of him at all times. Because of that, defenses have to be ready to sag back to the basket at a moment’s notice.
Westbrook is one of the best pure athletes the league has seen in years. He’s doing everything right except finishing. Once he realizes that he’s better than the guys on the other side and just plays without pressing too hard, he’ll be fine.
Push, but don’t press.
He needs to figure out the difference tonight.
So, do you rein him in, or do you let him go?
Let him go. That’s a big part of why you’re here.
For the record, Westbrook is averaging 24.3 points, 7.3 assists and 7.0 rebounds in the series. He’s shooting 41 percent, but many are makeable shots he’s just not converting.
He needs to concentrate a little more. Maybe his teammates need to beat him up a little during warmups and get his mind right so he’s comfortable with contact when the game starts. But he must convert.
His struggles in this series have revealed one of Oklahoma City’s weaknesses, perhaps its only one. I really wish the Thunder had that Peja Stojakovic-type sharpshooter who could burn you for covering the other guys too closely. Derek Fisher is the closest thing, and the Thunder might have to go to him more often the rest of the series to open the court.
Without that consistent perimeter threat, they need Westbrook to create.
It also would be nice if James Harden could help, but he can’t. He’s not good enough to be a legitimate threat against LeBron and D-Wade. He’s just another solid player in this series. Oklahoma City is getting just about all it can out of Durant. It’s up to Westbrook. He has the highest capability for improvement on either team.
The Thunder can win Game 4, and they are going to have to. A 3-1 deficit is as good as getting ready for next year. Utah almost recovered from a 3-1 deficit in 1998. They won Game 5 in Chicago, and nearly won Game 6 before Jordan made The Shot. Had Jordan not done that, Chicago would have faced Utah in the Delta Center in Game 7, and Stockton and Malone might have gotten their ring.
Oklahoma City can avoid that scenario with smarter play. Miami is not better than Oklahoma City when the Thunder’s stars are on the floor. Durant and Westbrook need to have taken a crash course in letting things go. They are young, and they are learning a hard lesson – some fouls aren’t worth it. Better to give up a layup than to sit half the third quarter on the bench.
So, like it or not, Oklahoma City, your fate lies in the hands of Russell Westbrook.
I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know if he’s ready – I think he is. But boy, is it going to be fun to find out.
Don’t blink.
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So, is Russell Westbrook ready to be that star? Or is he going to cost Durant his chance at a title?
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